Minor panic : libraries and freedom of access for children and teenagers to information on the internet : moral panic and legal solutions

Abstract

In the 1990s, parents, politicians and pressure groups have united in their concern about children accessing objectionable material on the Internet. This essay aims to help librarians understand the issues surrounding this 'moral panic' so that they can clearly express their professional concerns and responsibilities to a public that is at times enraged and upset. This essay will consider how librarians exert control over the materials they collect, and how community standards affect them. Censorship and pornography will be examined; pornography being defined as material considered objectionable and censorship as the means by which such material is restricted or excluded. A discussion of freedom of access for minors explores the codification of library practice and policy and explains that the rights of those aged under 18 have long been a concern for librarians. While librarians insist their professional practice is not to act in loco parentis,1 parents and the wider community often express concern if librarians do not 'protect the innocence' of children. This essay will also examine government legislation which attempts to control children's access to the Internet, and the technological solutions which have been invented to do the same. Finally, the New Zealand situation will be considered in order to place the issue in a local context.